By Kim J. Harmon

 

DANBURY – The sting of that 3-2 loss to Naugatuck in the 2002 CIAC Class LL championship game and the distressing way the 2003 season ended no doubt still lingered in the collected hearts and souls of the Newtown High School boys’ soccer team.

But no more – not after the Nighthawks defeated Norwalk, 3-1, last Friday to capture the CIAC Class LL state title that eluded them two years ago. Marcus Tracy scored a pair of goals and Ben Tirigall added one as the Nighthawks improved to 22-1-0.

“This was our goal right from the beginning,” said junior midfielder Marc Doherty. “Winning the SWCs was great, but winning a state title is a dream come true.”

The Nighthawks exploded out of the gate with nine consecutive wins, but then suffered a 2-0 loss to rival Masuk – on a tough pitch in Monroe – back on October 14. But from that moment on, the ‘Hawks were on a roll and reeled off 13 consecutive wins.

“That loss really put us on track,” said head coach Brian Neumeyer, who registered his 100th career win in Newtown’s 4-2 victory over New Milford back on October 2, “and we played our best soccer in the last half of the season.”

After destroying Staples of Westport, 7-1, in the Class LL semi-finals last Thursday, the offense was still cooking two days later. With just 3:24 ticked off the clock in the first half, Rodrigo DeSouza – as he slipped to the turf – slipped a crisp through ball to Tracy, who brought the ball halfway across the top of the box before ripping a left-footed shot past Norwalk goaltender Mike Surace to put the ‘Hawks on top, 1-0.

“Marcus can be more dynamic every game,” said coach Neumeyer, “but today he wanted this for the program. It wasn’t about him; he wanted to win this for his teammates.”

The ‘Hawks continued to dominate the ball control, especially with Doherty in the middle and Brian Miles in the back. But somehow – with 8:25 left in the half – Norwalk was able to sneak through the defense and tie the score with a shot to the far post.

“They were starting to build momentum,” said Drummond, who saved his best performances for the tournament season, “and we lost our focus for a brief moment. We fell into a little lapse, but I can’t imagine working behind a better group of guys. I know my team has always had my back.”

It took the ‘Hawks a little less than six minutes to regain control of the game and it was because of the strength of the Norwalk midfield.

“This is an excellent team,” said Neumeyer. “We were going to sit and absorb their pressure, but they have two excellent players in the midfield.”

The opportunity to take back the lead came 2:58 left in the half and it came on a direct kick from just outside the box. With the wall set up by Norwalk and the shot coming so close to the goal, the angle seemed too tight but Tracy popped a ball over the wall and inside the left post to give the ‘Hawks a 2-1 lead.

“Things were not working that great – but it’s soccer. That happens,” said Doherty. “When Marcus hit that direct kick, I knew we had this.”

But less than a minute later, Norwalk nearly got right back in the game when it ripped a shot that glanced off the post. But it was pretty much the last chance the FCIAC power (18-3-2 on the year) had before the ‘Hawks all but put the match away with 29:44 left to play in the second half.

Chris Hoagland intercepted a clearing ball inside the box and got the ball to Tirigall who – with literally no angle – somehow snuck a shot between the Norwalk goaltender and the near post to stake the ‘Hawks to a more comfortable, 3-1 lead.

The lead could have expanded even further, but two chances – both breakaways – came up empty. And Norwalk had its last gasp with 13:05 left to play when it ripped a direct kick that Drummond managed to tip just over the crossbar.

The ‘Hawks packed the box in the final 10 minutes, turned away a couple of advances, and secured their first state championship since 1990. That year the team – then known as the Indians – went 20-1-1 under head coach Larry Ashmore, allowing just seven goals all year and earning the state title with a 1-0 win over Guilford.

In the semifinal win over Staples last Thursday, Tracy scored two goals and assisted on two others while Tirigall had two goals and an assist. Tony Magliocca scored twice while Kevin Quinn scored a goal and Alex Meisel and DeSouza registered assists.

The ‘Hawks scored just twice in the first half off Wreckers’ goaltender Sean Milligan, but when Magliocca scored just 32 seconds into the second half the rout was on. The ‘Hawks had a 4-0 lead midway through the half and then scored three times in the space of 3:22.

Newtown 7, Staples 1

GOALS: Newtown – Marcus Tracy 2, Ben Tirigall 2, Tony Magliocca 2, Kevin Quinn; Staples – Robb McDowell. ASSISTS: Newtown – Marcus Tracy 2, Ben Tirigall, Rodrigo DeSouza, Alex Meisel; Staples – Matt Geringer. SHOTS: Newtown – 13; Staples – 8. SAVES: Newtown – Adam Drummond 1, Louis Ritzinger 2; Staples – Sean Milligan 1, Rob Kramer 1, Brian Carpenter.

Newtown 3, Norwalk 1

GOALS: Newtown – Marcus Tracy 2, Ben Tirigall; Norwalk – Pat Scully. ASSISTS: Newtown – Rodrigo DeSouza, Marc Doherty, Chris Hoagland; Norwalk – Tom Mattera. SHOTS: Newtown – 11; Norwalk – 10. SAVES: Newtown – Adam Drummond 4; Norwalk – Mike Surace 2.

PLAYER                                                G             A            PT

Marcus Tracy                                      38           11            49

Brian Miles                                          10             8            18

Rodrigo DeSouza                                 4           13            17

Tony Magliocca                                    6             8            14

Chris Hoagland                                     7             6            13

Ben Tirigall                                           6             7            13

Brian Conroy                                         4             7            11

Marc Doherty                                       3             4              7

Alex Meisel                                           0             5              5

Kevin Quinn                                          3             2              5

Noah Kugielsky                                    1             3              4

Nick Mentesana                                   0             4              4

Ryan Domingos                                    3             0              3

Ryan Davies                                         2             1              3

Justin Miller                                          0             1              1

Mike Nastri                                           0             1              1

Matt Taylor                                           0             1              1

Nick Sando                                           1             0              1

TOTALS                                               88           82          170